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| Red Kite Milvus milvus |
Monday 1 July
Rutland Water may be only fifteen minutes away to the west but the same time to the south will take me to the Northamptonshire Uplands and the woods and valleys between
Fineshades and Blatherwyke, now home to a number of resident
Red Kites that are always seen when we travel the A43 towards the county town itself. So it was that I met up with my old friend and former primary HT colleague with the hope of getting a few close shots of these magnificent raptors that now seem to have reached just about every corner of the English and Welsh countryside.
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| Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus |
Numerous
Wood Pigeons on the way along with
Blackbirds,
Common Starlings,
Rooks,
Jackdaws and the occasional
Carrion Crow but the first recorded birds upon arrival were a handful of
House Sparrows and a few, mainly female,
Chaffinches. A
Buzzard was soaring above me and then a low-flying
Red Kite which passed almost directly over Tony's car as he approached the car park. Once settled we looked about us, the arriving walkers, the caravans, etc and decided that we would be far better off down beside the lake at
Blatherwyke. So off we went, recording Magpies on the way and a single
Corn Bunting on the wire above as we approached this small hamlet. No sooner had we arrived and we were seeing
Red Kites; at least four or five at various distances. A pair of
Buzzards could also be seen away to our left near the woods whilst, immediately in front, we had a small number of
Canada Geese along with some
Mallard a few
Tufted Ducks. A pair of
Great Crested Grebes were feeding immediately below the low road bridge and the odd
Coot and
Moorhen were also noted. In addition to the numerous
Wood Pigeons, a single
Greenfinch and a pair of
Great Tits were actively feeding in the nearby tree. And why is it when you concentrate on an individual
Red Kite, waiting for it turn and come closer you look round and there is a closer individual right behind you? Along with the
Canada Geese a pair of larger, pale geese arrived with their two goslings but what were they? A dark bill with an enlarged hump above and what looked like a dark line down the middle back of the neck, Tony informed me that they were regular sightings at this site over a number of years; I will have to do a little research to discover their origins. Finally, we even had a lone
Oystercatcher.
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| A family of Canada Geese Branta candenis |
With no close shots of the
Red Kites we drove along the side of the lake and found the main flocks of both
Canada and
Greylag Geese. A dozen or more
Mute Swans were on the water along with a couple of
Grey Herons and
Barn Swallows feeding above - but only one more target bird was seen.
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| Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula |
With the weather showing signs of improving and the possibility of a little sunshine we next drove the short distance over to
Eyebrook Reservoir through some very pretty Northamptonshire villages with their lovely warm ,local stone cottages and houses and relatively unspoilt by wires and/or yellow lines on the road; a joy to behold. Indeed, not so much the
Collared Doves but the single
Red Kite within ten metres of our cars that dropped down on to the road to pick something up was, perhaps, very much the highlight of this short journey. Away from the fauna, who could not be impressed by the wonderful engineering spectacle that is the Harrington viaduct that we passed under on both the outward and return journeys.
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| Common Tern Sterna hirundo |
Arriving at Eyebrook we were immediately greeted by scores of feeding
Barn Swallows which were then joined by a number of
Common Swifts. Nearer the shallow end we were also to record god numbers of feeding
Sand Martins over the water. On the far bank were good numbers of both
Mute Swan and
Tufted Ducks with a handful of the latter immediately in front of us. At least a half-dozen
Cormorants were resting on a pontoon ans so provided the occasional fly-past but it was the smaller white birds that caught our attention. First a couple of
Black-headed Gulls with one being mobbed by an immature
Herring Gull and then the first tern. Soon we had as many as five or more
Common Terns feeding along the water and often very close.
Carrion Crows and
Lapwings also found something of interest in the grass at the water's edge and then a single
Pied Wagtail flew past. Whilst watching the
Common Terns I was struck by how much larger and stranger the next "white bird" looked till, with sudden awe and excitement I realised that an
Osprey had put in an appearance; not one but a pair. Presumably on a fishing trip from nearby
Rutland Water and both adults; were they a non-breeding pair or two breeding males that just happened to be fishing at the same site?
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| Osprey Pandion haliaetus (above and below) over Eyebrook Reservoir |
A short drive to the shallow end produced more
Lapwing along with the previously mentioned
Sand Martins plus both
Grey Heron and a single
Little Egret. A pair of
Shelduck were caring for their two ducklings and three
Common Sandpipers were feeding on the exposed mud.
So ended a very enjoyable morning from where we returned to Fineshades for a welcome coffee and large slice of cream-filled chocolate cake having recorded
38 species.
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| Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus |
Birds seen:
Mute Swan, Greylag Goose, Canada Goose, Shelduck, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Great Crested Grebe, Cormorant, Little Egret, Heron, Osprey, Red Kite, Buzzard, Moorhen, Coot, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Common Sandpiper, Black-headed Gull, Herring Gull, Common Tern, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, Swift, Sand Martin, Barn Swallow, Pied Wagtail, Blackbird, Great Tit, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Rook, Common Starling, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Corn Bunting.
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| What is this goose? Can you let me know before I find out. |
For more observations from the Axarquia Birder check out the home website/blog in Spain:
(There is a link between both sites - CLICK on either address.)
